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Portland State University Portland State University Thursday, Jan. 17, 2013 | vol. 67 no. 30
Latin Night fires up Portland State
Green ideas: from plans to reality 2013 Solutions Generator award winners announced Andrew Morse Vanguard staff
“An event like this totally reflects our priorities here at Portland State,” Wiewel said. “This may be the first Latin Night, but I’m sure it will not be the last.” After the president’s address, PSU’s Latina Dance Club took to the floor in a flurry of red shirts and swirling skirts. After their first dance, students ran into the crowd and brought unsuspecting onlookers onto the stage for a rousing rendition of “Cachondea.”
There are countless ways to be “green,” and now, several groups of students have an opportunity to contribute to the cause. The Institute for Sustainable Solutions at Portland State recently announced the award recipients in their 2013 Solutions Generator program, which seeks to engage students with devising their own sustainability projects around campus and the broader community. The program, which began four years ago, awarded funding to a dozen groups for various projects that will manifest over the next two terms. “[Solutions Generator is] an opportunity for students to engage in community projects outside the classroom,” said Laura Gleim, communications coordinator for ISS. This year’s projects take many forms, such as a group devoted to raising farmworker awareness, a research project on how to better incorporate sustainability into the undergraduate experience and a film looking at social sustainability in Cuba, to name a few. Angela Hamilton, coordinator for ISS, said that students submitted a total of 22 proposals. Groups that didn’t receive funding up-front were designated “endorsed projects,” whose members will work with Hamilton to improve their submissions and potentially receive funding in the future. There weren’t as many proposals submitted this year as in years past but, Hamilton said, “The idea to get
See latin Night on page 2
See solutions on page 5
MILES SANGUINETTI/VANGUARD STAFf
Dancers Quincy Davis, left, Jose Mora and Natasha Strode perform a traditional Aztec dance at the first Latin Night at PSU.
Las Mujeres celebrates Latin culture with an eye toward PSU community Matthew Ellis Vanguard staff
Students who attended Portland State’s first Latin Night were given an inside look at the tastes, sounds and customs of Latin America. The event, held in the Smith Memorial Student Union on Friday, brought roughly 250 people
together to dance, eat and learn about the array of Latin American countries represented in PSU’s diverse student body. The event was hosted by Las Mujeres de la Raza, a student group that focuses on the needs of Hispanic, Latina and Chicana women by uniting and empowering women of all nationalities and ethnicities. “There is a really strong Latin community here on the PSU campus,” explained Rosie Zuriaga, a junior social work major and codirector of Las Mujeres.
“We wanted to organize an event highlighting different areas all across Latin America, to bring these groups together and celebrate our diversity and community.” Zuriaga’s comments were echoed by PSU President Wim Wiewel in his opening address to the attendees at Latin Night. Latino student enrollment at PSU has increased 99 percent over the past five years, according to Wiewel. This, he explained, makes PSU the top Latino-attended university in the state of Oregon.
PSU’s campus will expand to South Waterfront next year Construction of the Collaborative Life Sciences Building underway Ryan Voelker Vanguard staff
Oregon Health and Science University and the Oregon University System have teamed up on a $295 million project, bringing a brand-new facility to Portland State students in 2014. It’s called the Collaborative Life Sciences Building, and that’s not just a clever title. The new building aims to raise scientific education and collaboration to an unprecedented level. The CLSB will facilitate opportunities for students from PSU, OHSU
and Oregon State University to study together under one roof. Students will also have the opportunity to work with some of the region’s top science experts in stateof-the-art classrooms, lecture halls and labs. “PSU is co-owner of this building, and it will become part of our campus,” said Dan Zalkow, executive director of Campus Planning, Construction and Real Estate at PSU. “There won’t be an increase in lab fees for courses taken at CLSB versus the main campus,” he added. The CLSB is being constructed on 19 acres of land at the South Waterfront, donated to OHSU by the Schnitzer family.
“The faculty is extremely enthusiastic about the collaboration with PSU,” said Mark Williams, vice president of Campus Development and Administration at OHSU. “There will be undergraduate students working with or near scientists who are doing cutting-edge research.” The CLSB will house approximately 185,000 square feet of education space as well as a new 400-seat lecture hall, which will be the largest on PSU’s campus. One major benefit of the extra space is a sizable increase in classroom capacity. MILES SANGUINETTI/VANGUARD STAFf
See building on page 4
The new building will deliver bigger classrooms and a 400-seat lecture hall.